I stared at myself in the mirror, biting my lip as I looked at the unfamiliar reflection. Turning this way and that I examined the new suit, feeling very different in this than I'd felt in any of my previous costumes. "This is so bizarre," I murmured to myself hesitantly. It wasn't that I didn't like it or that it looked bad but...
But I looked like a hero.
For one, there was a lot more color and light in this skin-tight jumpsuit. Gone was the black and dark purple, replaced now with white, iridescent silver, lavender and only retaining the darker color in places as an accent. I'd reverted back to having long sleeves on this one (I'd learned my lesson about exposed skin with my temporary student costume), but I tried to shy away from the vague, almost military-esque style of my previous outfits as well. Besides the combat boots, anyway; I wasn't getting rid of those.
The cape was new too, and I finally cracked a smile as I remembered how I'd come to the decision of adding a mantle in the first place.
I'd been standing in front of this same mirror a couple weeks back, feeling very foolish indeed as I twirled a bit, furrowing my brow as I looked at the royal blue fabric that was definitely way too long for me.
The image staring back at me then had looked like a kid playing dress-up - and I felt like one too. I mean, come on, how silly was it that I had put on All Might's Silver Age suit just to try and figure out if I liked the idea of a cape or not?
First of all, the suit was way too big for me (obviously), and with the red, white and blue material hanging off of me like it did, it made it even harder to figure out if a cape was my thing or not. So, as a work-around I tried to hold the fabric back behind me with one hand, and let the cape fall over my shoulder in a way that almost didn't look ridiculous.
Almost.
"Ugh, this isn't going to work," I muttered, deciding I should probably take the suit back off before Toshinori got home and saw me playing dress-up. However, even as the thought crossed my mind I heard the front door, and I swore. Despite its simple-seeming structure, the suit was actually a pain and a half to get on and off, and frantically I started working at the clasp that held the cape on my shoulders. All I ended up accomplishing was entangling myself in the loose fabric further.
Dammit, dammit, dammit! I screamed internally in mortification, hearing him put his stuff down in the other room and his footsteps as he walked through the apartment.
"Hey, love, I'm home. You know, I was thinking about -" I heard his voice as he approached the bedroom, and when he pushed the door open and saw me standing in the middle of the floor, tangled in his hero suit and cheeks burning with embarrassment, he stopped. For a moment it was quiet, and after a few seconds of him staring at me with wide eyes and jaw dropped in surprise, he suddenly burst out laughing. Glowering at him had zero effect as the man doubled over, clutching his side with one hand and shielding his mouth with his other as he laughed so hard he had to lean against the doorframe for support. "Wha- what are you doing?" he wheezed, bouncing back and forth between coughing up a lung and laughing his ass off.
Well, he wasn't mad that I was messing with his stuff at least, but his abundant amusement didn't help my mortification any either. "I- I can explain!" I stuttered out, and Toshinori laughed harder.
Strange how I'd gotten to a place where it wasn't so alarming anymore to see the blood trickling down the retired hero's chin when he lowered his hand. Still grinning, he wiped away the moisture that had accumulated at the corners of his eyes from his mirth before grabbing a handful of tissues off the dresser and cleaning his face next. "Wow, that was not what I expected to come home to," he chuckled, eyes light. "But I must say, you look fantastic in my colors," he added smoothly, and somehow that made me blush even harder.
"Hush," I admonished with no real seriousness as I tried to straighten the suit back out. "I was just... thinking about what I wanted for my new hero suit, and I was wondering about a cape. So, I thought I'd try yours on... t-to see what it was like, you know?" I explained, sure that he must think I was just as silly as I currently felt.
Toshinori laughed again. "You should have tried on my Young Age suit, then. I was still pretty muscled back then, but not as heavily as I was in my Silver Age - it might have fit you a little better," he suggested, and I had to scrutinize his smile for a moment to figure out if he was making fun or being serious. Apparently it was the latter though as he disappeared into the closet, emerging again with his original costume in his hands. "Here, try this."
Okay, now I was starting to feel the tickle of amusement creep through my chagrin. "You were still too damn tall for it to fit all that much better," I pointed out, feeling the corner of my lip turn upward just a bit.
"Well, that's not the point. You just want to get a feel for the cape, right? This one might sit on your shoulders a slight bit better," he dismissed my protests easily, still grinning. It was obvious he was enjoying this way too much.
"Fine. Well, you'll have to help me out of this one first," I huffed.
The blonde's eyes danced. "I have no qualms about undressing you, dear."
"Behave," I chastised him again. Unperturbed and grinning he helped me with the clasps, and if his finger lingered on my bare skin a little longer than necessary as he helped me out of it, I certainly wasn't going to complain. Stepping into the older suit, I giggled at the appraising look in Toshinori's eye. "See? Still way too big," I said as I stuck my tongue out at him.
He rolled his eyes. "Still looks fantastic on you," he chuckled.
"Narcissist," I teased and the former hero snorted. "I think you are just enjoying me wearing your insignia too much."
Toshinori blushed lightly at my tease, which probably meant it was true. "Maybe. But still, what about the cape?" he reminded me with a smirk.
Okay, so he might have been a little right that it did fit my shoulders slightly better than the previous one, and I turned back to the mirror, pursing my lips as I considered it. "How easy are they to work in?" I asked for his opinion and experience. "I mean, they look cool, but really how practical are they?"
The retired hero shrugged. "As with anything, practice makes perfect. You can learn ways to use them to your advantage - it can shield your movements or you can use it to distract your opponent's attention for a split second if you time it right. And they are nice and warm in the winter. Plus, with your quirk you could have one customized to conduct electricity, and you could come up with some new moves probably."
I hummed, considering his advice; he had some fair points. "And do you think... I'd look good in one?" I asked awkwardly, a hint of blush creeping back into my cheeks.
Hands circled my waist from behind as Toshinori pulled my back against his chest, and I giggled at the feel of his lips brushing along my hair, then ghosting down the side of my face. "You look beautiful in anything."
"I'm being serious," I complained lightly, watching his reflection in the mirror.
"So am I."
"Toshi."
His breath whispered over my ear as he laughed again. "Yes, I think it will look great - very elegant."
"'Elegant?'"I repeated, unable to keep the amusement from my voice still as I tilted my head and turned into him halfway, bringing my own lips to skim over his cheekbone.
"And sexy," he murmured. His lips were at my jaw now.
"Is that so?" I purred.
"Definitely."
It took a little more persuading, but by the time his suit was long forgotten on the floor, I was thoroughly convinced a cape was the way to go.
Now as I looked at the shimmering black fabric in the mirror, I decided he'd actually been right (even if at the time his suggestion had been incredibly biased). I did look good, and I'd also listened to his advice on customizing the fabric to work with my quirk. The shimmer in the material was actually light-weight metal fibers, and I already had plenty of ideas swirling in my brain about how I could utilize them.
I hadn't shown Toshi the design before submitting it, and I was curious how he'd react to the small homage portrayed in the costume's pattern. The colors were my own, but the purple lines and circle etched across the chest of the suit was something I thought he would most definitely recognize. The more I looked at my reflection, the more I decided I liked it, and the more excited I got to show him too. I knew he was out training with Midoriya right now... so why not take this shiny new suit out on its first test run?
Exiting the building, I leapt into the air, feeling an undeniable rush of exhilaration as the wind caught my cape and the material covering my body moved easily with each action. Laughter bubbled up from my chest and I held tight to this moment of joy. Maybe I was being childish - it was just a bit of clothing at all - but this meant something. It felt like a step forward, and a step into my future. This was part of my new beginning, and from the view up here with the ground below and nothing but the heavens above - with light glinting off me in a way that it never could have done before as I hid in the darkness - it seemed like there was nowhere else to go but up.
Only the sky was my limit.
Moving through the atmosphere across campus, it was only a matter of seconds before I reached my destination, but I took my time in my descent. When my feet touched down outside the doors of one of the newer training buildings, there was nothing that could hope to take the smile off my face as I pushed open the door and sauntered inside. I had some idea of what I must look like, and I probably should have been slightly ashamed of how smug that made me feel. In this moment, however, I had no shame at all.
Who knew that a bit of clothes could make one feel so powerful?
At the opening of the doors, the building's occupants looked up from what they were doing - it looked like the retired hero had been putting his successor through some drills - and my elation grew at the look on Toshinori's face.
Grinning, I stopped with my hand on my hip. "Well, what do you guys think?"
Toshinori was surprised and a tad confused when someone threw open the doors - he'd reserved the space for the hour, so no one else should be trying to use the training gym right now. But all thoughts instantly left his mind when he turned to look at the entryway, and he felt his jaw drop.
There was a goddess standing there.
The light coming in through the door behind the ethereal woman glinted off her body, shimmering like a halo around her, and the effect of the cape billowing in her wake as she walked confidently across the threshold made it hard for the retired hero to remember that anything other than this angel - this valkyrie - existed in the world. She was radiant - stunning. The bright white was such a contrast to the dark of her old costume, and the different areas of shimmer designed around the seams of the outfit drew attention to her body in all the best ways. Linear patterns broke up the white planes with light purple, silver, and black, and the hero swallowed a lump in his throat as he recognized the markings traveling over her shoulders and above her breasts. It was like a jolt straight through his core to see his mark on her, and he felt a ball of something unnamable well up inside him. Was it pride? Love? Awe? More likely it was all of the above and then some.
Mei stopped before them with a hand on her hip and a smile that took his breath away. Unusually, her hair was down and it flowed over her shoulders, held back from her face by a silver circlet, highlighting shining and elated ocean eyes. "Well, what do you guys think?" she beamed.
Toshinori was utterly speechless, so it was perfectly fine that his protégé immediately launched into gushing over her new suit. "Oh wow! Your new hero costume is so cool, Hara!" he exclaimed excitedly, running up to the young woman. "The cape - does it have metal in it? And your boots look like they've got a steel toe in them now like mine do!"
"Yep, hope you don't mind I borrowed that from you," she chuckled, biting the inside of her lip. "And the cape was All Might's idea."
When she mentioned his name he finally managed to snap his jaw shut, and he shook his head to try and clear the daze he felt. "Looks like the cape isn't the only inspiration you got from me," he said pointedly, glancing at the design adorning her chest. When her cheeks flushed like a rose, he thought it only made her look even more beautiful.
"Yes, well I had to pay tribute to the man who's made my future career as a hero possible," she said a tad sheepishly. If the boy weren't here, Toshinori wouldn't have been able to stop himself from sweeping her up in his arms. Even still, he almost did anyway.
"It's so different from your old suit - but I really like it!" Izuku continued excitedly.
"Thank you. Different is what I was going for," she admitted. "I'm restarting my life, you know? New beginnings." She took a deep breath, giving the blonde man only a second to wonder at her hesitation before she added, "And I think this look fits with my new hero name too."
New hero name? his thoughts echoed in surprise. That was news to him.
Ocean eyes met cyan, and the aspiring heroine smiled. With a touch of flare that was incandescent on her, she flipped her cape over her shoulder while simultaneously igniting her quirk. Suddenly, she was cloaked in violet flames as her suit literally buzzed with electricity along the metal fibers Midoriya had pointed out moments ago. As much as she used to tease him for being dramatic in his hero form, it was amusing to see her showmanship now. "Come January, I'll debut as the pro hero, PuriFire," she glowed.
"PuriFire. How fitting," Toshinori beamed, pride welling up inside him. From Hell Fire to Saint... It was a personal purification of sorts that got her to where she was now. PuriFire was a fantastic new name in his opinion.
"Yeah? You think so?" she asked as the fire died down. A few seconds later only a slight charge remained in the air, and not a mark could be seen on the costume.
"Definitely!" his successor agreed, looking excited.
"Well, it's all not just for show, you know... Hey, Midoriya, what would you say to a sparring match? So long as your mentor says it's okay, anyway," she suggested cheerfully, glancing sideways at the tall man.
All Might raised a brow at the boy who was now practically buzzing with anticipation. "I suppose I could allow it," he drawled with a grin, and Mei pumped her fist in the air. "If-" he added, giving them both a stern look, "you two can keep from hurting each other. Or yourselves."
"Aw, come on. We'll play nice. Right, kid?" she replied flippantly, and Midoriya nodded eagerly.
The former number one hero stepped back and held his arms wide as a show of approval, watching with amusement as his student and his girlfriend squared up for their match. Toshinori was curious how Mei would play this fight, though. He knew her well enough to guess she wouldn't purposely throw the fight just because her opponent was a child, but he also didn't think she'd go all out either. However, Midoriya had been progressing quickly lately. His power was still limited at a fraction of what All Might's power had been when he'd passed it onto the boy, but even still the teen was steadily becoming a force to be reckoned with in his own right. PuriFire would probably need to put in a good effort to win even against the less experienced challenger. In fact, now that he thought about it... had he ever seen Mei in a fight where she'd been able to give it her all? The fights she'd been involved in when he'd known her as a vigilante before Yūei had all been rather minor, and when they'd fought each other in the final exams she'd had to hold back to keep her cover intact. The closest true battle moment he could think of was the fight at Kamino Ward, and even then she'd already been injured and exhausted, plus her main focus was on protecting Bakugo. A thrill went through him at the idea of getting to see what she was really capable of. He may not see that in a friendly sparring match today, but maybe someday soon he'd get to see the dark-haired woman shine in earnest.
Mei had been training on her own lately as she prepared herself for the hero licensing exam in December, and when the retired hero called their match to start, the immediate differences between the woman at the start of the school year to now was definitely noticeable. Sure, she'd been holding back while impersonating a student, but it was obvious to him she'd still learned a thing or two. Likewise though, Midoriya was growing more confident in cultivating his own fight style, and the pride he felt as his knowing gaze watched the green-haired teen was undeniable. Honestly, Toshinori had no idea who he should be rooting for right now.
At the call to begin, Mei was instantly moving, vaulting around the space at impressive speeds, and it wasn't until then that Toshinori realized what an advantage it must be with her quirk to spar inside a building primarily constructed of metal. The ninth holder of One for All flashed with green lightning as he matched her movements, and All Might laughed aloud to realize the kid was taking what he'd learned from training with Gran Torino's fight style and applying it here. Even so, he wasn't able to land a hit.
Midoriya's resolve grew alongside his frustration the longer Mei evaded him, and curiously the woman didn't appear to be attempting any sort of serious attack herself. While sometimes the best offense was a good defense, something told Toshinori that wasn't her ultimate plan here. Then, when they were both airborne - Izuku posed to strike with a determined countenance and Mei smirking after pistoning off a ceiling beam - the air suddenly changed.
His successor felt it too, confusion registering on his face for a split second as Mei's grin widened. "Hey, Midoriya - wanna see one of my special moves?" she taunted, and instead of dodging his foot she purposefully extended her fist to hit back with a blow of her own. Simultaneously, bright emerald and shadowed cyan eyes widened, and it was obvious to the experienced hero that his young protégé attempted to pull his kick at the last second. PuriFire used that to her advantage. Turning her fist and opening her palm, she grabbed his extended leg and swung him around with her momentum. "You probably thought my jumps were random, huh? I mean, I kinda have just been going in circles." Midoriya jerked away from her grip, landing in a crouched position several feet away as Mei continued bouncing around from wall to ceiling and back. His eyes were narrowed as they analyzed the situation, trying to figure out the plan she was alluding to, no doubt. That's when the retired hero first noticed there was an unexplainable breeze, and the air felt almost sharp.
What the... did she magnetize the whole building? he realized with shock. Her constant movement had been forming polarizations - shaping a magnetic field that she now had her opponent standing in the middle of. It was a magnetized vortex, and even as he put it all together he saw the boy's confusion as the invisible force started to pull at him.
"Hey, Midoriya, your shoes have metal in them, right?" she grinned and it was like a light bulb clicked on over his head.
Wide eyed, Izuku gasped. "Your quirk can create magnetic fields!"
He was moving slower as now Mei finally switched to the offensive, and with no other option Midoriya put all his focus into blocking and evading her attacks as he struggled against the unseen force that kept trying to drag him to the steel-reinforced walls of the gym. With the metal in his shoes, his Shoot Style was also limited and less coordinated. From an objective view, it was actually a genius strategy to test the kid - the added resistance on his body forced him to work harder without actually making him over extend his quirk. Honestly, Toshinori was a tad miffed Mei had never told him that she could do this before now.
It was clear the fight was close to ending at this rate if Midoriya didn't think of a counter attack fast (All Might still wasn't sure who he was hoping to see win), so when suddenly Izuku leapt and let the unseen pull yank him backwards, Toshinori found he was unconsciously holding his breath.
PuriFire dove, eyes light yet determined as she aimed to end the match. Despite her suit being woven with metal as well, if anything her movements had gotten faster which probably meant she was simultaneously manipulating the polarization of her own body, which was impressive to say the least. However, when she got close enough to Midoriya, Toshinori saw the exact moment on her face when she realized her mistake - a mistake Bakugo had made in his last match against Deku as well.
Just because Midoriya didn't really use his hands to fight as often anymore, didn't mean he couldn't, and reinforced gauntlets were a lot easier to remove than shoes. He tossed the glove of his right hand aside and in one movement used the unencumbered limb to catch a fist full of Mei's cape.
After all that, the newly added garment was her downfall as the green-haired teen grabbed ahold of the fabric, twisting against the woman's moment and cheekily tangling her in her own costume. Uncontrolled in her trajectory now and momentarily distracted, Mei slammed against the wall, with the metal-lined cape pinning her like a net as she lost her grip on the alternate charge and Toshinori flinched in sympathy - that was probably going to bruise.
"Alright!" he called out, clapping his hands together. "That's enough - I'd like to avoid having to explain property damages once we're done here." He coughed to hide a chuckle as Mei struggled out from under the black fabric with a thunderous scowl.
"Dammit!" she yelled, "how do other heroes make this look so easy?"
Okay, there was no hiding the laughter now. "Practice," he answered her, before inquiring, "are you able to undo the magnetization?"
Mei grumbled, sourly. "Yeah, I just gotta reverse the polarization. Help me out for a second, would you, Toshi?" she asked, and he chuckled again as he came forward to undo the clasp that held the cape in place. Once freed she rolled her shoulders before launching back across the gym, moving the opposite direction now than she had previously. After a few laps, Midoriya was finally able to step away from where he'd been frozen in place.
"Quick thinking there, my boy," All Might praised him. "Good job."
"Yeah, but Hara wasn't trying super hard to hit me back - if this was a real fight I probably wouldn't have won," the kid disqualified himself, and when Mei landed back in front of them again she frowned. Reaching out, she play-punched the teenager's arm.
"Don't say that. I wasn't attacking because I was hedging my bets on winning with my Vortex Trap, not because I was intentionally going easy on you. You outsmarted me and took advantage of the fact that I wasn't used to my new suit yet - that's great. Don't discount yourself so quickly," she chided kindly.
"It's the only thing I could think of," he explained, finally cracking a smile. "Your Vortex Trap is strong," he acknowledged.
Mei shrugged as an odd look crossed her face. "It should be. All for One taught me that move."
Already wide green eyes now were like saucers and the kid made a sort of squeaking noise as he reacted in surprise. A part of Toshinori was distantly proud of himself for barely even flinching at the woman's words - how strange it felt though, to not experience those same feelings of nausea and venom in his damaged gut at the mere mention of that name. Was he really becoming so desensitized? "A-All for One taught you that?" Midoriya repeated in shock.
She nodded. "Yeah. You know, that's the thing with villains - especially the ones who get to be powerful and have followings," she sighed, expression somber. "Villains are still people too, and very few of them are evil one-hundred percent of the time. As crazy as it sounds, at one point in time he was kind to me..."
"All for One is evil, though. A lot of villains are," Midoriya said darkly, with a hardness in his eyes that Toshinori was unused to.
Damn, kid. The business is already turning you jaded, huh? he thought a bit sadly.
The dark haired woman considered the boy before her thoughtfully a moment. "What qualifies someone as completely evil?" she asked him.
Confusion broke through the dark look and Midoriya seemed confounded by the question. "Well, when someone commits evil acts - things that hurt others or cause chaos - I'd say that makes them evil, right?"
"So, someone does something that hurts someone else and they're automatically evil?" she prompted.
"Not immediately, but if they do it over and over it does," he replied, brow furrowing further.
"Okay, so if there is someone who commits harmful acts multiple times they're evil," she clarified, "But what if these acts that hurt people were done with good intentions? If they were just trying to help? Is that person evil still?" Suddenly Toshinori was thrown back to a conversation that seemed so long ago already, and in his mind he was standing beside his successor as they stared out from the viewing platform on I-island as they discussed David Shield's actions. He wondered if Midoriya was thinking of that too.
"Well, no..."
"But people were still hurt," she prodded, and Toshinori understood what she was trying to do. The lesson she was trying to teach Izuku was a hard one to learn - one that many were never observant enough or open minded enough to dive into. Defining one's morals was difficult even for an adult, but knowing what you believed somehow was a lot easier than knowing why you believed. "You know your history, right? Adolf Hitler destroyed thousands of lives, but he did it all because he was trying to create what he believed was a better world. He hurt many, many people with his actions, but to him it was done with good intentions. Does that mean he wasn't evil?"
Midoriya balked. "You're trying to defend Hitler?" he sputtered, confusion becoming even more profound.
"No, I'm simply applying your definition of evil," she said, expression still watchful. "Do you want to amend your reasoning again?"
"Well, someone is evil if they do things that harm others, with the intent of harming people, even if it's for what they believe is for a good reason," he said slowly, thinking it through as he spoke.
"Are heroes evil then?" she asked quietly, and Midoriya froze. "Heroes harm their opponents all the time, and go into a fight with the intent of defeating the person or persons they face. But they fight with good intentions, right? To save others? Still, by your definition heroes are evil."
"T-that's not what I meant!"
"Then say what you did mean. What is 'evil,' Izuku?"
"I-I don't-" he floundered.
"You don't know?" she finished his sentence for him, and he stared at her wide-eyed. "It's okay if you don't; the concept of true altruism or pure evil is a very complex thing, which is why many would argue there is no such state of being."
"You're saying you don't believe in evil?" he asked slowly, taking in her words.
"No, I believe in evil. But I don't believe anything or anyone is only evil. On the flip side of that coin, no one is completely good either. There are no absolutes in the world, Izuku," she said in a quiet, borderline bitter tone of voice as she looked away.
"What about Shigaraki?" he asked, a spark of anger flaring to life behind emerald irises. "What about All for One? Or Overhaul? Those villains are all evil."
Mei bit her lip, looking indecisive for a moment before ultimately sighing and rubbing the back of her neck. Toshinori wasn't sure what she was about to say, but a part of him wondered if he should be trying to redirect this conversation; yet again they were speaking as if Midoriya wasn't still a child. It almost didn't seem fair to put this on him. "I was your age when I tied weights to my hands and feet and tried to jump off a bridge," she said bluntly, emotionlessly. He was pretty sure his expression must mirror his student's right now - a mix of horror and sorrow. Mei had told him of her previous suicide attempt, but to hear it described so... it was chilling. "All for One talked me out of jumping. I now know in hindsight he was simply taking advantage of the opportunity to gain another follower - he's a master manipulator and gathered followers by 'helping' them and garnering their loyalty - but while his intentions might not have been from a good place, he still saved the life of a young girl.
"And you know, All for One raised Shigaraki as his own - there's a reason the guy is so totally devoted to him. I never knew where Shigaraki came from, back then, but... that's All for One's family name, you know... Shigaraki-" Toshinori jolted at that bit of information, feeling the nausea hit full force now as he thought again about how his master would react if she were here to see what had become of her grandson. It made him sick. "-Whether his ultimate motive was manipulation or not, All for One is kind and supportive towards Tomura. And Tomura behaves like a petulant child, but in his own way he cares for his master just as much as you care for yours. It's kinda a sick parallel, if you think about it. But I guess what I'm trying to make you see, is that even two of the most evil men we can think of have something good about them. Do you understand what I'm trying to tell you? There are no absolutes.
"As for Overhaul... well, I don't know enough about the guy to search for the good in him. However, as much as I hate the bastard too, I'm sure it still exists somewhere inside him," she admitted grudgingly.
As bizarre as the whole conversation had become, Toshinori surprised himself and the other two as well when he suddenly barked out a laugh. "All this coming from the woman who once told me she had no faith in humanity?" he asked incredulously.
Her smile when she looked at him was humorless and dark. "Exactly. Because like I said, if there's no true evil, then there's no true good either."
The same ideals that led Toshinori originally to strive to be a Symbol of Peace were the same ones that now made him feel incredibly saddened by the young woman's views. Because, honestly he disagreed. There was true good in this world - there had to be. "Maybe one person can't be all good or all bad, but actions can," he argued, looking back and forth between the dark-haired woman and his successor. The former he looked at with concentration and the later with trepidation. He really was starting to worry this wasn't a suitable topic to discuss with a child, aspiring hero or not. "That's what distinguishes heroes from villains - actions, intentions, and heart."
She shrugged, half grimacing. "Right and wrong is defined by a society and those who are in charge. There are plenty of villains who do what they do with what they believe are good intentions and heart. Look - I'm not trying to defend criminals-" she added quickly when All Might scowled, "I mean, look at me, right? I was a villain and I came back from that and am trying to become a hero now. I know that it's wrong. But I think, if we dehumanize our opponents because we believe them to be too evil to be like the rest of us, then we stand to lose our purpose too."
That hit home, and Toshinori felt his breath catch in his throat a moment at the power of her words. When he looked at Midoriya, he was staring at the ground with his brows scrunched together in thought. "I understand," the teen said quietly. "Some villains - villains like the one you used to be - they need saving sometimes too, don't they?"
"Well, that's not exactly what I was going for, but you're getting there, kid," she said, smiling softly as she put an arm around his shoulders and hugged him lightly.
Toshinori felt like he'd been kicked in the stomach, because he knew too well that had he met her back then, he wouldn't have seen a woman in need of saving. He knew that when he'd pinned down the vigilante mid-fight almost a year and a half ago, the thought would have never crossed his mind to consider her as anything more than a criminal had events not gone the way they had.
Was he wrong for that?
No. He'd still felt remorse when he learned of Shigaraki's heritage - his initial instinct was to try and save the boy. But that was only after learning the truth. Gran Torino had cautioned him against viewing the young villain as anything other than a villain, but now he almost had to wonder. How far was too far to find redemption?
Thoughts thoroughly jumbled now and mind slightly disquieted thanks to the woman's philosophy lesson, the retired hero decided to call to end today's training session. He watched Mei thoughtfully once back in their apartment, leaning on his hands with his elbows propped on the counter as she set about making dinner. As she worked he watched her delicate hands, and let his gaze linger on the way she moved, finding peace in the familiarity of her company. As their relationship progressed, the young woman was still helping him grow as a person, even if she didn't realize it.
And she'd surprised him today with the way she mentored young Midoriya as well. Of course, she was one of his teachers now, but he was interested to see how good at it she actually could be when she wasn't just filling in for another teacher's lesson or assisting with training. It was something he hadn't really thought about at the time, but looking back at how she'd interacted with the students while undercover should have tipped him off to just how good she actually was with the children.
She'd make such a good mother someday, flitted through his head suddenly, and his elbow slipped off the counter as he jumped in surprise at his own thought. Where in the world did that come from?
That train of thought was a mental path he was very hesitant to go down. But even so, the idea still gave him a nervous sort of trill in his stomach because, with his new resolve to stay alive and his love for her growing stronger everyday, if she ever did decide she wanted a kid... he hoped it would be his.
Sure, they'd only been dating a couple months at this point - wasn't still too early to be thinking about that sort of thing? - but for a split second he allowed his mind to wander. He'd never really thought he'd have his own family, given his line of work, and after witnessing Nana's heartbreak he'd sort of thought he didn't really want one either.
But that night was the first time Toshinori allowed himself to imagine Mei with a different family name and a small blonde-haired child peeking from behind her legs with ocean eyes. Later as he was curled up in bed with her back pressed against his bare chest and his hand splayed over the soft skin on her stomach - as her deep even breaths were interrupted by a ringing phone that pulled them both from their slumber - he realized that image had been in his dream just now too.
Sleepy blue-green eyes were narrowed and bleary against the bright light of the phone screen as she picked the offending noisemaker up and checked the message that had woken them. "It's from Nighteye," she said, groggy voice turning slightly more alert. "Toshi... they found the girl. We move on the Shie Hassaikai headquarters tomorrow," she informed him, and he felt his gut twist uncomfortably.
There was plenty he could say - plenty he wanted to say. The thought of her going into a dangerous situation worried him, just like it had before when he thought her mission to save the Yūei students might very well end in her death. He understood her need to act though, and given his previous career he really had no room to talk either. It was a hero's job, after all. However, unlike her last mission, he couldn't save her if things went south this time.
And that terrified him.
His grip on her tightened as he pulled her closer against his chest. But instead of voicing his fears he pressed his lips against the dip of her shoulder, holding her in the safety of his arms while he could. "You should probably try and get back to sleep then," he murmured against her skin. "Sounds like you have a busy day ahead of you."
Toshinori knew he wouldn't be able to sleep again, and so he spent the rest of the night listening to her soft breathing, and praying to whoever might be up there that he'd get to do it all over again tomorrow.